Effectiveness of Fairness Creams Advertising: A Case Study on Fair & Lovely

Abstract

Since times immemorial, the obsession with fair skin tone has been present in the females of Asia particularly those belonging to the subcontinent. They try home-made remedies, use commercial products, and spend generously on professional saloon treatments and alike just to get a skin tone, lighter than their natural shade. This fascination for fair complexion has led to the entry of many fairness creams brands in the market, both local and international. Fairness cream advertisements have been notorious for their exploitation of females on the basis of skin color that casts a negative impact on the society at large. This dissertation focuses on the advertising strategies of fairness creams with special focus on Fair & Lovely’s advertising appeals and explores whether the strategies are unethical in nature. It probes into the issue by discussing what type of advertising appeals are being used by fairness creams in Pakistan and over the years how have the various brands dealt the ‘fairness’ attribute for positioning, i.e. are the strategies resulting in female exploitation or not? Further, it explores the Pakistani consumers behavior with regard to the purchase of personal care particularly fairness products. The research is built upon the following hypothesis: H1: Consumers look for prestigious brands in personal care products, therefore companies need to position themselves as prestigious brands. H2: The advertising strategies, in general, used by competitors in fairness cream sector are unethical in nature. A consumer survey of 50 females residing in Islamabad/ Rawalpindi was conducted to find their views on Fair & Lovely’s advertisements. During the research it was found that the target market is independent, broad-minded and practical. They are passionate about getting fair but feel uneasy with the matrimonial theme in fairness creams advertisements. Instead they are more comfortable with the idea of achieving confidence and changing their destinies with the help of fairness creams. Fair & Lovely has a presence in the Pakistani market since 1978. Over the years it has continuously rejuvenated itself by introducing new product variants. The findings from consumer survey, observations and informal interviews revealed that although Fair & Lovely is doing better in comparison with almost all of its direct competitors and enjoys a high recognition and recall, yet it has an ordinariness attached with it. The Pakistani consumer is sophisticated and shows an ‘apologetic’ attitude towards the purchase of popular but mass-brand fairness products. They pay more attention to prestigious brand names and quality packaging. Keeping in view the Pakistani consumer’s behavior, it is recommended that Fair & Lovely should work upon improving its image by using the fairness attribute as subtly as possible.